Oberlin in Lorain County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Downtown Oberlin Historic District
Photographed By J. J. Prats, August 24, 2019
1. Downtown Oberlin Historic District Marker, side one
Inscription.
Downtown Oberlin Historic District. . The intersection of Main and College streets has been the center of Oberlin since the town and college were founded in 1833. The first downtown buildings were made of wood and were destroyed by a series of spectacular fires. The first college building, Oberlin Hall, stood on the southwest corner of College and Main and included recitation rooms a dining hall, chapel, offices, and lodging. In 1887, Akron architect Frank Weary designed the large brick building at numbers 5 to 13 West College. Number 23 West College (Gibson Block) once housed a silent movie theater on the second floor. East College Street’s historic buildings include the Apollo Theater, which showed Oberlin’s first talking movie on May 11, 1928. From 1897 to 1929, an interurban streetcar line connected Oberlin’s downtown to Cleveland. Oberlin’s downtown historic district was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2003. , Oberlin’s historic downtown buildings are typical of American commercial architecture from the 1860s to the 1930s. The southeast corner block is the first commercial building in Oberlin with an iron frame. It was designed by Cleveland architect Walter Blythe in 1882 and has housed a bank since 1904. At 39 South Main Street is the Union School (now the New Union Center for the Arts), also designed by Blythe and built in 1874 of local red brick. Beyond it at 69 South Main is the old Town Hall, built in 1919. Across the street is the Post Office, designed in neoclassical style by Toledo architect Alfred Hahn and dedicated in 1933. At numbers 24 and 18 South Main Street were two African American businesses, Marie DeFrance’s Millinery Shop and the Pettiford family’s popular bakery.
The intersection of Main and College streets has been the center of
Oberlin since the town and college were founded in 1833. The first
downtown buildings were made of wood and were destroyed by a series
of spectacular fires. The first college building, Oberlin Hall, stood
on the southwest corner of College and Main and included recitation
rooms a dining hall, chapel, offices, and lodging. In 1887, Akron
architect Frank Weary designed the large brick building at numbers
5 to 13 West College. Number 23 West College (Gibson Block) once
housed a silent movie theater on the second floor. East College Street’s
historic buildings include the Apollo Theater, which showed Oberlin’s
first talking movie on May 11, 1928. From 1897 to 1929, an interurban
streetcar line connected Oberlin’s downtown to Cleveland. Oberlin’s
downtown historic district was placed on the National Register of
Historic Places in 2003.
Oberlin’s historic downtown buildings are typical of
American
commercial architecture from the 1860s to the 1930s. The southeast
corner block is the first commercial building in Oberlin with an iron
frame. It was designed by Cleveland architect Walter Blythe in 1882 and
has housed a bank since 1904. At 39 South Main Street is the Union
School (now the New Union Center for the Arts), also designed by
Blythe and
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built in 1874 of local red brick. Beyond it at 69 South Main
is the old Town Hall, built in 1919. Across the street is the Post Office,
designed in neoclassical style by Toledo architect Alfred Hahn and
dedicated in 1933. At numbers 24 and 18 South Main Street were two
African American businesses, Marie DeFrance’s Millinery Shop and the
Pettiford family’s popular bakery.
Erected 2008 by the City of Oberlin Historic Preservation Commission, Oberlin Heritage Center, and The Ohio Historical Society. (Marker Number 26-47.)
Location. 41° 17.493′ N, 82° 13.054′ W. Marker is in Oberlin, Ohio, in Lorain County. Marker is at the intersection of West College Street and South Main Street (Ohio Route 58), on the right when traveling east on West College Street. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Oberlin OH 44074, United States of America. Touch for directions.
The view is northeast. Main Street runs left to right.
Photographed By J. J. Prats, August 24, 2019
4. Southeast Corner of Main and College
View is of main street. This is the 1882 Walter Blythe-designed building that has housed a bank since 1904.
Photographed By J. J. Prats, August 24, 2019
5. Southwest corner of College and Main Streets
College Street runs to the right. Frank Weary’s 1887 red brick building is on the corner.
Photographed By J. J. Prats, August 24, 2019
6. Gibson Block, center, 23 West College Street
It is the light-brick building. Today it houses Gibson’s Bakery.
Credits. This page was last revised on January 6, 2020. It was originally submitted on January 6, 2020, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio. This page has been viewed 330 times since then and 31 times this year. Photos:1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on January 6, 2020, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio.